blog – Sime Curkovic Ph.D.

Supply Chain Students: Turning RFQs into Strategic Cost Intelligence

This reading assignment is based on research I conducted during my research sabbatical in Spring 2026. But first, recall our general discussion on RFQs, cost breakdowns, outsourcing, competitive bidding, etc. In our earlier lectures and readings, we discussed how supply chain management directly impacts profitability, return on investment (ROI), and a company’s ability to do things “better, faster, and cheaper.” One of the major ways companies improve performance is through...

Advanced AI Certification Program (for Procurement)…

Man, procurement is changing rapidly. AI is really reshaping how sourcing professionals approach supplier risk monitoring, negotiation preparation, RFQ analysis, contract review, and spend analytics.I recently surveyed more than 100 procurement and SCM pros to better understand how orgs are using supplier RFQ cost breakdowns. See results below.One of the most interesting findings was that over 70% of respondents identified AI-driven cost analysis as the next major frontier for procurement.At...

Managing tariffs in the supply chain: To mitigate these risks, companies can integrate solutions into their supplier agreements, even allowing for real-time adjustments based on tariff fluctuations. By tying contract pricing to recognized indices, such as commodity exchange data and/or Bureau of Labor Statistics figures (i.e., PPI for relevant metal categories such as aluminum and steel), organizations can create structured, transparent mechanisms for cost-sharing.

The Top Import Partner of Every U.S. State: https://lnkd.in/eKT767J9. Check out Michigan...Top import customer: Mexico, 44% of total state imports?! $70B. You would think Michigan borders Mexico. American automotive OEMs and suppliers? In one of my supply chain classes, we discussed economic price adjustments and indexing, and a student asked how tariffs could be captured in a similar way. This led to a conversation about how the strategies outlined in our...

My students in Silicon Valley say making $200K+/yr feels like making $90K/yr in Metro Detroit. Some pay close to $6K/month for rent (so they need roommates). Owning a home will be tough. Kind of related…Ranked: Worst Companies for Employee Retention:

My students in Silicon Valley say making $200K+/yr feels like making $90K/yr in Metro Detroit. Some pay close to $6K/month for rent (so they need roommates). Owning a home will be tough. Kind of related...Ranked: Worst Companies for Employee Retention: https://lnkd.in/gVqJCXtV.Mapped: What You Need to Earn to Own a Home in 50 American Cities: https://lnkd.in/eMkG82KF.Mapped: The Median Down Payment for a House, by U.S. State: https://lnkd.in/efA4gxEA.Mapped: The Income a Family...

Will AI really kill the tools we teach like Excel? From 2020, notice where AI was on the list. We are still holding firm on Predictive Data Analytics, ranked #2! Every WMU SCM major now has to take this class (Excel on steroids). Our Business Analytics minor teaches Big Data w/ skill sets such as:

Will AI really kill the tools we teach like Excel? From 2020, notice where AI was on the list. We are still holding firm on Predictive Data Analytics, ranked #2! https://lnkd.in/gthyAWf3. Every WMU SCM major now has to take this class (Excel on steroids). Our Business Analytics minor teaches Big Data w/ skill sets such as: 1. Advanced Excel (power query & pivot) & macros;2. Data visualization (Tableau, Power BI...

My SCM students often ask: What earnings can I expect in my career if it goes well? Elon Musk says: “You get paid in direct proportion to the difficulty of the problems you solve”. Another lesser known manager told my students: “The critical factor for this salary gap is that if you reach 35-ish years old and have never led a team, then it’s extremely difficult to move up to the next level.” Tons of data out there to be had and make sense of…

Winter NACE 2024 Salary Survey: https://lnkd.in/eJJCfx5c. My students love salary data…The 10 Highest-Paying Supply Chain Jobs: https://lnkd.in/e35zVDv4. As part of the 2023 survey, ASCM looked at salary ranges by title. Based on the data, the top 10 non-executive supply chain titles by their median salaries were:Demand planner: $78,375Supply chain analyst: $78,400Master scheduler: $81,500Purchasing manager: $90,000Inventory manager: $93,000Logistics manager: $100,000Procurement manager: $104,000Materials manager: $110,342Supply chain manager: $114,750Supply chain director: $145,000My SCM students often ask: What earnings can I expect in my career...

TRUE OR FALSE? MOST FIRMS WILL CONTINUE TO REDUCE THE TOTAL NUMBER OF SUPPLIERS THEY MAINTAIN, AND THE REDUCTION WILL CONTINUE TO BE AS DRAMATIC AS THEY HAVE BEEN IN THE LAST 8 TO 10 YEARS.

TRUE OR FALSE? MOST FIRMS WILL CONTINUE TO REDUCE THE TOTAL NUMBER OF SUPPLIERS THEY MAINTAIN, AND THE REDUCTION WILL CONTINUE TO BE AS DRAMATIC AS THEY HAVE BEEN IN THE LAST 8 TO 10 YEARS. False. Yes, the companies that recruit from WMU HCOB have long been on an aggressive outsourcing strategy. Over the last 30 years, they keep outsourcing more and more of their material needs to a...

Students (see the crazy import data below, AI is coming soon in a very big way):Supply chain management (SCM) presents unique challenges largely due to the lack of real-time visibility and the unpredictable nature of lead times. In an ideal world, companies would have full visibility into every stage of the supply chain—from sourcing raw materials to delivering the final product. If we knew exactly where every component was at any given moment, and if lead times were always consistent and predictable, the supply chain would be much easier to manage. In other words, SCM would be a piece of cake if we knew where everything was all the time from beginning to end. You can make a trillion dollars if you invent a technology that does that.

Students (see the crazy import data below, AI is coming soon in a very big way):Supply chain management (SCM) presents unique challenges largely due to the lack of real-time visibility and the unpredictable nature of lead times. In an ideal world, companies would have full visibility into every stage of the supply chain—from sourcing raw materials to delivering the final product. If we knew exactly where every component was at...

Many students keep asking me, why don’t these OEMs just use dual sources of supply to mitigate risk? Well, it is very complicated. Almost all questions in business (and life) can be somewhat answered with this word – MONEY. For example,…

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jjziSDoeOcU One of our WMU SCM alumni put the video above together on supply chain risk management for you. It has become a huge area within SCM since covid, especially at the automotive OEMs in Metro Detroit. Feel free to reach out to Lisa and say thank you for doing this for you. She cares about Broncos. Her non business and business email is below. It would be very cool...

I recently had a student ask me this question – Would you recommend using Vendor Managed Inventory (VMI) or Consignment Inventory (CI)? I feel like VMI means that you have to regulate the Suppliers more than Consignment would. Consignment allows you to have your inventory costs in the hands of the supplier so the inventory cost is lower for you. In other words, Consignment means we will buy the stuff from suppliers, but we will not pay the supplier until we actually use it.

These stats came out from ISM Supply Chain Weekly (you get this if you join ISMWorld.org - $35 for students) Students:Companies within the same industry (and even across different industries such as aerospace, steel, chemical, etc.) are dependent on each other. The flows are more intertwined ("Integrated" supply (no chain) management) than ever before. In a recent study, over 90 percent of manufacturing companies report having some level of outsourcing (no...